Podcasts Archives - Jewish Sacred Aging Rabbi Richard Address-Jewish Sacred Aging

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Address offers a Pesach message and some questions for conversation around the Passover table.







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Peter Kasdan and Dr. Liz Etkin-Kramer discuss Yodeah.org, their online portal for genetic screening and counseling of Jewish families for the BRCA gene and other genetic markers for cancer risk.







Ashkenazi Jewish men and women are disproportionately more likely to carry hereditary genetic mutations that can markedly increase their lifetime risk of cancer. Most people are not aware, and most will not have a family history. Yodeah’s mission is to educate the Jewish community about hereditary cancer genetic mutations and provide access to affordable, clinical grade testing. Yodeah’s goal is to save lives. Knowledge is power. Knowledge saves lives.







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Liz Etkin-Kramer, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.







Dr Liz Etkin-Kramer is a board certified gynecologist in South Florida.







In addition to her private practice, she is an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at FIU Herbert Wertheim School of medicine and she holds leadership positions in Florida’s district XII of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She founded Yodeah.org, a nonprofit dedicated to educating the Jewish community on their increased risk of carrying hereditary cancer genetic mutations and facilitating cost effective genetic testing.







With the late Lauren Corduck,  founder of One in Forty, she co-founded the Prevent Hereditary cancer coalition. In 2020 she was appointed to the American College of Obstetrics of gynecology presidential task force on knowledge gaps in breast and ovarian cancer risk assessment, management and genetic testing, and created educational videos for practicing OB/GYNs.







She is passionate about breast and ovarian cancer risk assessment, early detection and prevention.













RABBI PETER E. KASDAN







Rabbi Peter E. Kasdan was named Rabbi Emeritus when he retired in July 2001, after serving as Rabbi of Temple Emanu-El of West Essex, Livingston, New Jersey, for thirty years. Known, most widely, for his social justice work, he helped create and was the first president of both the Livingston Interfaith Clergy Association and the Livingston Interfaith Council,

On this week’s ENCORE broadcast of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, South Jersey resident Bill Fisher discusses his wife Carol’s terminal illness and decision to use New Jersey’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) option.







Carol had been a nationally recognized book editor until her retirement in 2016. (You can read her obituary in the Philadelphia Inquirer here.)









Their lives took a dramatic change back in fall 2016, when Carol was diagnosed with brain cancer. Luckily Carol was able to take advantage of a clinical trial at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia. She responded well to the experimental vaccine which kept her cancer in check for 7 years. Less than 10% of patients with this form of cancer ever survive this long.







However, in the past year, the Carol’s cancer re-emerged and difficult decisions needed to be considered for the final months of Carol’s life.









Luckily Carol’s faith and support from medical professionals, family and friends helped Carol and Bill navigate the difficult decisions necessary in participating in New Jersey’s Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) program.







With a diagnosis of less than 6 months to live and diminishing functionality, Carol chose to end her life in the comfort of her own home in the presence of her family. 







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Bill Fisher







Bill Fisher is a retired real estate executive who was trained as an architect and spent most of his professional life managing the planning, design and construction of commercial, industrial and medical buildings in the mid-Atlantic and Southwest United States and London, England. He currently resides in South Jersey where he and his wife, Carol Fisher raised their two children Haddon and Lauren.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Joel Soffin discusses his new book, The Mitzvah on Your Forehead: A Rabbi’s Journey to Improve the World.









In The Mitzvah on Your Forehead, Rabbi Joel E. Soffin presents life stories that invite the reader to follow his journey as he shares his experiences and insights into family, community, and social action worldwide. Luminaries in the Jewish world as well as inspirational leaders from all walks of life provide commentary on each of his essays. From discussing personal ethical decisions to relating experiences such as those with Rwandan genocide widows and Ethiopian Jewish immigrants, the stories and essays in this book are thought-provoking, entertaining, and inspirational. Rabbi Soffin contends that each one of us has a unique mitzvah “on our forehead,” a special calling or ability to make life better for others. Here, you’ll discover many of them and perhaps, ultimately, your own. In a world where there is so much chaos and pain, this book is a helpful reminder that we all, both individually and collectively, can find ways to be of service in making the world a better place.









Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Rabbi Joel E. Soffin







Rabbi Joel E. Soffin has been a life-long social activist, addressing the needs of the poor and the vulnerable in many places around the world. He initially studied economics and has a PhD pending at Yale.







In 1971, he began his studies for the rabbinate at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City where he was ordained in 1976. Three years later, he became the Rabbi of Temple Shalom in Succasunna, NJ. While there, he developed a long series of social action projects, rescuing and resettling Vietnamese boat people and Soviet Refuseniks, supporting the Argentinian Jewish community of Mendoza and the Zvenigorodka community of Ukraine and providing over a million meals to Ethiopian Jewish children waiting to make aliyah to Israel.







Rabbi Soffin also created the Adult Mitzvah Corps of the Reform Movement and the teen Bonim Banim – Building Youth projects, organizing weeks of Jewish Religious Living in New Orl...

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Linda Fodrini-Johnson, author of The Empowered Caregiver: Practical Advice and Emotional Support for Adult Children of Aging Parents, discusses strategies for families to engage in elder care discussions and decision-making.









Taking responsibility for the healthcare, safety, and financial affairs of our parents as they near the end of their life is an immense undertaking and comes with challenges, logistics, and stresses that we don’t always know how to navigate. We want to provide the best care we can and make the right decisions for our parents, but we need tips, tools, and education around this and help and encouragement as we do it. The Empowered Caregiver is a pocket support guide specifically designed to provide you with strategies and solutions for caring for your aging parents. It offers useful interventions to frame your thinking, help you manage difficult situations, and reduce your stress as your parents decline and need greater assistance.

















Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Linda Fodrini-Johnson







Linda Fodrini-Johnson became a licensed family therapist and professional certified care manager in 1984, was president of the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers—now called Aging Life Care Association—and founded Eldercare Services, a full-service care agency in the San Francisco Bay Area that provides care management, home care/caregiving services, advocacy, counseling, support groups and education. She was director of the Dementia Respite Center—one of the first in the San Francisco Bay Area—and pioneered the multi-award-winning Early Stage of Dementia Program.







Her eldercare expertise has been featured in newspapers like the Contra Costa Times, East Bay Business Times and San Francisco Business Times as well as national magazines including Consumer Reports, Forbes, Kiplinger’s, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Dayle Friedman, founder and director of GrowingOlder.net, a resource website for seniors, discusses her practice in Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia care for elders.







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Rabbi Dayle Friedman







Rabbi Dayle is a spiritual guide, social innovator, chaplain, and scholar. She has been a leader in the fields of spirituality and aging, pastoral care, and Jewish healing. She is currently Special Advisor for Member Support and Counseling for the Central Conference of American Rabbis.







Her publications include Jewish Wisdom for Growing Older: Finding Your Grit and Grace Beyond Midlife, and Jewish End-of-Life Care in a Virtual Age: Our Traditions Reimagined, which she co-edited. Her first book, Jewish Pastoral Care: A Practical Handbook from Traditional and Contemporary Sources, is recognized as a foundational text for its field.







Rabbi Dayle was ordained by HUC-JIR; she earned Masters’ degrees in Social Work and Jewish Communal Service from USC and HUC-LA. She trained as a spiritual director with Yedidya Center’s Moreh Derekh program, and as an interim clergy person with the Interim Ministry Network. Her work has been recognized with awards from the Forward, the American Society on Aging, and Neshama: Association of Jewish Chaplains.